Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX) Shares Acquired by IFP Advisors Inc

IFP Advisors Inc grew its position in Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:SWX – Get Rating) by 25.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,477 shares of the utilities provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the quarter. IFP Advisors Inc’s holdings in Southwest Gas were worth $113,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 135,802 shares of the utilities provider’s stock valued at $8,403,000 after acquiring an additional 11,400 shares during the period. Brinker Capital Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 19.4% during the fourth quarter. Brinker Capital Investments LLC now owns 3,664 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 595 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its holdings in shares of Southwest Gas by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 81,325 shares of the utilities provider’s stock worth $5,032,000 after purchasing an additional 620 shares during the period. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas during the fourth quarter worth $924,000. Finally, JCP Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Southwest Gas during the fourth quarter worth $4,270,000. 87.59% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on Southwest Gas from $78.00 to $75.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “underweight” rating and set a $95.00 price target (down from $100.00) on shares of Southwest Gas in a report on Monday, March 6th. StockNews.com initiated coverage on Southwest Gas in a report on Thursday, March 16th. They set a “sell” rating for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on Southwest Gas from $71.00 to $63.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $79.60.

Insider Activity

In other news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn purchased 2,332,835 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 10th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $60.12 per share, for a total transaction of $140,250,040.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 8,944,465 shares in the company, valued at approximately $537,741,235.80. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In related news, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn acquired 2,332,835 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 10th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $60.12 per share, for a total transaction of $140,250,040.20. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 8,944,465 shares in the company, valued at approximately $537,741,235.80. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, major shareholder Carl C. Icahn acquired 407,466 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 23rd. The shares were bought at an average price of $60.11 per share, with a total value of $24,492,781.26. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 10,213,070 shares in the company, valued at approximately $613,907,637.70. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders bought a total of 3,236,622 shares of company stock worth $194,582,985 over the last 90 days. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Southwest Gas Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE:SWX opened at $56.30 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $58.97 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $63.70. The stock has a market capitalization of $3.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -19.55, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.44, a quick ratio of 1.08 and a current ratio of 1.08. Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $53.79 and a 1 year high of $95.62.

Southwest Gas (NYSE:SWX – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 28th. The utilities provider reported $1.16 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.57 by ($0.41). Southwest Gas had a negative net margin of 4.10% and a positive return on equity of 5.86%. The firm had revenue of $1.42 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.22 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc. will post 3.52 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Southwest Gas Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 1st. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 15th will be given a $0.62 dividend. This represents a $2.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 14th. Southwest Gas’s dividend payout ratio is currently -86.11%.

Southwest Gas Profile

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Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc engages in the energy business. It operates through the following business segments: Natural Gas Operations and Utility Infrastructure Services. The Natural Gas Operations segment focuses on purchasing, distribution, and transportation of natural gas in Arizona, California, and Nevada.